You drive into an unfamiliar town, the battery is below 15% and your charging card is not in the car. Or your card simply is not accepted at this charger. Paying ad hoc is the fallback: you charge without a card or subscription and pay with your bank card or phone.
How does it work?
There are two ways, and not every charger offers both.
- With a card reader, you hold your card or phone against the charger’s reader, just like in a shop. Then you plug in the cable and start the session.
- With a QR code, you scan the code on the charger with your phone. It takes you to a payment page from the operator, where you pick a payment method and start charging from your screen.
Make sure the cable is properly in before you pay. At some chargers the session only starts once the car confirms the connection. If you have paid and nothing happens, try re-plugging the connector before you pay a second time.
What does it cost?
The price differs per operator and changes over time, so there is no fixed rule. Ad hoc is usually more expensive than charging with a card. That can happen in three ways: a higher price per kWh, a fixed start fee, or an extra charge for the payment itself. The tariff is shown on the payment page or on the charger’s screen before you begin. Read it.
Here is a worked example, with assumptions you can change. Say you charge 40 kWh. With a card you pay 0.60 euro per kWh, ad hoc 0.75 euro per kWh, plus a 1 euro start fee.
- With a card: 40 x 0.60 = 24 euro.
- Ad hoc: 40 x 0.75 + 1 = 31 euro.
That is 7 euro more for the same electricity. Pay ad hoc once a year and it hardly matters. Do it 20 times and it adds up to 140 euro. These figures are invented for the sum. Look up the real tariffs with the operator.
When does it make sense?
- You rarely charge in public, for instance because you have a wallbox at home.
- You need an unexpected charge and the nearest charger does not work with your card.
- Your card or app shows an error and you do not want to keep searching.
- You are in a rental car or someone else’s car.
If you charge in public every week, a card almost always pays off, especially if you also use fast chargers. How to choose one is covered in comparing EV charging cards and what is an EV charging card.
When does it not work?
Not every charger has a card reader or QR code. Some can only be started with a card or app. A poor connection at the charger or on your phone can delay the payment or make it fail. With weak reception the QR code will not load, and you will have to hope for a charger with a card reader. So check the map beforehand for an alternative nearby, before you arrive at a charger with an almost empty battery.
When you pay by bank card, an amount may be held on your account first. It is settled after the session, but it can take a while before you see the rest released. How much, and for how long, differs per operator and per bank.
Watch out for scams
A QR code is easy to fake. Stickers exist that are placed over the real code and lead to someone else’s payment page.
- Check whether the code is neatly built into the charger or is a loose sticker. If it feels loose, or sits crooked over another code, do not scan it.
- Check the address in your browser after scanning. It should belong to the operator named on the charger.
- Never enter more details on a payment page than you need to pay.
- In doubt? Pay with the card reader, or choose another charger.
Keep your proof
Take a photo of the charger, showing the operator’s name and the charge point number. Keep the receipt or confirmation email as well. If you want to claim the cost back from your employer, or the amount looks wrong, you will need it. Without proof you are in a weak position if you want to dispute a charge.
If something goes wrong with the payment, contact the operator. Their number is usually on the charger itself. For what to do when a charger will not cooperate, read broken charger: what to do. Looking for a charger nearby? Try the map.